Indicating device for bottles.



' No. 873,410. PATBNTBD DEG. 1'0, 190?.

J. GASAGGIA."

' INDIGATING DEVICE FOR BOTTLES.

APPL'IGATION rmm SEPT. 2B, 1907.

JULIUS CASACCIA, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

I INDICATING DEVICE FOR BOTTLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 10, 1907.

Application filed September 28. 1907- fierial No. 394-997- To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JULIUs CASAGOIA, a

subject of the King of Italy, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco, and State of California, have invented a new and useful Indicating Device for Bottles, of

which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a device which will be placed within a bottle to indicate whether the original contents have been tampered with at any time before the bottle,

is emptied, or whether the bottle has been refilled.

The object of the invention'is to provide a cage extending from the neck to the bottom of a bottle in which is placed a float designed to rest on the surface of the contents of the ,bottle and descend freely in the cage as the level of theliquid in the bottle is lowered, but prevented from rising, by simple means attached to the cage, should other liquid be poured into an empty or partly filled bottle.

With this and other objects in viewthe invention consists of the novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and definitely claimed.

In the'accompanying drawing :Figure 1 is a view of a closed bottle to which the invention is applied. Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the upper and lower ends of the cage with the central part broken away. Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 looking downward. Fig. 4 is a side view of the lower end of the cage on the same scale as Fig. 3 showing how the float is prevented from moving to the upper end of the cage.

Similar reference numerals are used for the same parts in all the figures.

Within a cage 1 is placed a float 2, movable downwardly in said cage but prevented by novel means from rising therein. The cage 1 is made in various sizes, the intention being to reach from the bottom of a bottle to its neck. The cage is suspended in said bottle by wires 3 leading from the upper end of the cage out through the bottle mouth where they are bent over its edge 4, brought together and secured by a seal 5 of glass ap plied, during the course of manufacture, to

the upper end to near the lower end of the cage 6. The bottom of the cage is formed by the lower ends 9 of the wires 7which are bent inwardly to a central'point and if desired soldered or twisted together. The lowermost ring 10 is preferably, although not necessarily, made of a flat band instead of round wire such as is used for the rings 8. The top 11 of the cage 1 is formed like the bottom, that is, the wires 7 are bent inward to the axis of, the cage and there joined in any suitable way. A simple means for uniting these wires is by twisting them together as shown at 12, two or more of which may be longer than the others to form the suspending wires 3. Instead of using the upper ends of the wires 7 for the suspending wires, independent pieces may be connected to the cage at the twist 12.

In the form of device shown in the drawing, four wires 7 are employed, While the encircling rings 8 and 8 have flattened portions 13 between the wires 7. Pivoted to the uppermost ring 8 of each pair 8-8 is a depending finger 14 hanging close against the side of the cage when in erect positlon. The finger 14 is attached to a pivoted sleeve 14 from which, and at a right angle to the finger,

pivotal sleeve 17 of the finger 15. Each pair of fingers 14 and 15 are so disposed as to lie in a vertical plane at a right angle to the planes of similar fingers immediately above and below them. This arrangement has been adopted as it enables the rings 8 to be placed closer together than would be the case were all the fingers hung on two opposite sides, and for another reason hereinafter described.

The float 2 is preferably spherical and is placed within the top of the cage at the same time the cage is attached to the bottle. The float is held by a wire 18 in the upper end of the cage until the bottle is filled, the wire extending under and supporting the float and held in the bottle neck by the cork.

Thefingers 14 and 15 may, if desired, be attached to tubular sleeves pivoted on the rings 8, but'the preferred form is that shown in the drawing where the sleeve and finger, with the stop 14 in one case and the weight 16 in the other are made each from a single piece of wire. This is accomplished by measuring from one end of the wire a length suflicient for the finger; the wire is then turned to form several coils like a spring. It is then brought back past the finger and coiled on the opposite side thereof, the wire ending with the stop 14 on the coil 14, whereas in coil 17 the wire extends down- Wardly a short distance and is then rolled into a flat coil forming the weight 16 which normally rests against the wire 8 Bottles received for filling resemble Fig. 1, the float being retained at the top by the wire 18. After a bottle has been filled the cork is replaced with the wire 18 to lock the ball in its uppermost position. Then the liquid is to be used the cork is extracted and the wire 18 withdrawn permanently, the float resting on the surface of the liquid. As the liquid is used the float descends in the cage, its Weight being sufficient to depress the fingers 15 and let it pass, after which the fingers return to their normal position under the influence of the weights 16.

lVhen enough liquid has been poured from the bottle to change the inclination of the cage 1 a further withdrawal would so incline the cage that the tendency of the float would be to run down the slightly upturned cage to the liquid. This is prevented by the fingers 14 and 15 one of which always projects across the cage. When the bottle is restored to upright position the ball will again float.

The further reason, hereinabove mentioned, for placing the fingers on at least four sides of the cage will now be described. The essence of the invention is to keep the float always at the level of the original li uid in the bottle. It means were not provided to prevent the float returning, the bottle could be refilled with inferior liquid after the original contents had been exhausted, or a partly empty bottle could be filled with an inferior, substance without detection. In the latter case if the bottle be part full and an inferior, or equally good liquid be poured into the bottle,'the float will not rise to the top, being prevented by one of the fingers from rising above the level of the liquid before being adulterated.

Assuming that the t ;ttle is more than half empty and more is to be withdrawn. On tipping the bottle, the float tends to move by gravity towards the mouth of the bottle but is stopped by the finger 15 if it should happen to be uppermost, or by the finger 14 if the finger 15 is on the under side. 1t is to be remembered that the finger 14 is a pendent one and when on the upper side of the inclined cage it will drop across it by the action-of gravity, being held in this position by the stop 14 hearing against the ring 8 Should it so happen that the fingers 14 and 15 on the cage immediately above the float be at the sides when the bottle is turned to pour out its contents, one of the lingers 14 or 15, next but one above the float and at a right angle to the fingers at the side or immediately above the float would project across the cage and prevent the float traveling backward in the cage.

I claim:

1. An indicating device for bottles and the like comprising a cage having an uninterrupted passage in one direction, a float mov- .able in said passage, and swinging means adapted to close said passage to movement of the float in the other direction.

2. An indicating device for bottles and like receptacles comprising float, a cage having an uninterrupted passage for the float in one direction, and means hinged to said cage for closing said passage to the movement of the float in the opposite direction.

3. An indicating device for bottles and like receptacles comprising a float, an elongated cage having an uninterrupted passage for the float in one direction, and means hinged to said cage at different points thereon to prevent any return movement of said float.

4. An indicating device fm bottles and like receptacles comprising a float, an elongated cage having an uninterrupted passage for the movement of the float in one direction, and fingers hinged to the cage and adapted to extend across the passage to prevent the return of the float.

5. An indicating device for bottles and the like comprising a float, an elongated cage adapted to extend from the bottom to the neck of a bottle vvithin the same and sealed thereto, said cage having an uninterriipt'ed passage for the movement of the float in one direction, and a plurality of lingers pivoted to said cage from end to end arranged to close said passage to the travel of the float in the opposite direction.

6. An indicating device for bottles and the. like, com n'ising a cage svaled in a bottle, a float movable freely from the top to the bottom of said cage, and a plurality of lingers hinged to said cage from end to end to prevent a return of the float.

7. An indicating device for-bottles and the ALEX SCOLARI, GEO. F. OAVALLI. 

